New Directions

Why We Need More Taxes

If one were to listen only to Republican hype and the hysteria of the Tea People one might think that the only thing worse than paying taxes is to be boiled in oil. The question we should ask is this: are both of these groups crazy or is it only the Tea People? The answer, of course, is that the Republicans aren’t crazy; they’re simply cunning, like a tiger, or maybe more like a snake that stalks its prey relying only on deceit. The Tea People just don’t know any better. Like children following the Pied Piper, they believe anyone who says taxes are bad, and they willingly follow anyone who promises to reduce or eliminate taxes – people like the cheerleader from Alaska who seems to think that all you need to do to win a debate is shout the loudest and drown out the opposition. Honest debate is simply out of the question.

The question we might ask is why is there this odd coalition of nasty, crafty, old rich men and undereducated, cheerleader-following, poor people? Why? Because it works. It works for the cunning, crafty old men that is. As for the unsuspecting Tea People, they will simply be dessert for the snake – after the large middle class has been devoured by the unquenchable appetite of the wealthy.

It has been claimed by many, myself included, that our country is already in the clutches of a ruling oligarchy. The evidence is not hard to find. Just look how our businesses have been allowed to export our jobs to China and India and so many other countries. Just look how our banking system was allowed to destroy the world economy with no adult supervision. Just look at how the gigantic energy companies are allowed to destroy the environment with gargantuan oil spills and the total destruction of mountains (yes, entire mountains) in the search for coal. Yet, clean nuclear energy that provides almost all of the energy for countries like France, and clean wind energy that supplies large amounts of power for Scandinavia and the UK is opposed on all fronts. Just look how President Bush became President even though he received fewer votes than Al Gore – even in Florida.

Under the reigns of Republican presidents like Reagan and Bush our economy has been practically destroyed and our national debt soared into the trillions. Under Bush taxes on the extremely wealthy were drastically cut while the poor received almost no break at all – and all of it justified by the lie that it had to be done so the rich could create more jobs for the poor people. Except they didn’t. At least not for the poor of America. The simple fact is that they eliminated all the jobs the poor people had – the unskilled labor jobs – and exported them to even poorer countries. Then they started on the skilled jobs, IT jobs, pharmaceutical jobs, jobs that needed a college education – and they exported those jobs too. So what was left for the citizens of the USA? Not much. That’s why people resorted to buying and flipping houses – they had to make money somehow.

Then it all fell apart and the wealthy Republicans started with their tax lies again. Don’t tax the rich – their money can help create jobs. And the Tea People? They just don’t have a clue about what’s going on. They just know they are desperate. Money is hard to come by and, thanks to the conniving of George Bush they have no tax relief. They know they would be better off today if they didn’t have to pay taxes. These are poor desperate people who can’t afford their tax burden. So what do they do? They align themselves with the Republicans! That’s like thinking you can be friends with a snake. They don’t know they are dessert.

The truth about taxes is this: we need them. Without taxes there is no police force, no fire department, no roads, no municipal water, no schools, no army, no navy, no marines, no air force, no coast guard, no city hospitals, no railroads, no airports, no centers for disease control, no snow plows, no life guards, no federal aviation administration, no national transportation safety board, no food and drug administration, no FBI, no CIA, no sidewalks, no border patrol, no national guard, no sheriffs, no ambulances. Without taxes there would never have been an Internet. There would have been no Moon landings. There would be no Interstate Highway System.

The truth is that society needs taxes in order to operate. The Republicans know this; that’s why they write all those laws that tax the poor. The poor Tea People are just lost. They don’t understand. They think that teaming with the Republicans will save them, but such an alliance will only lead to their destruction. You can’t make a deal with a snake.

The truth is this: a society can only function well when the major burden of taxes falls upon the wealthy – after all, they’re the ones with the money. Our country used to know that. It was obvious. We had a graduated income tax – the more you made the more you paid. Pretty simple rule – and it worked. The Republicans turned that sensible notion on its head and created a disproportionate system that unfairly taxes the lower-income people and allows the wealthiest people in the entire world to pay absolutely no tax at all. This is simply untenable. A country cannot long exist that doesn’t tax its wealthiest citizens. The poor Tea People don’t get it. They just know they are suffering and they want to stop paying taxes and the Republicans say they’ll help. Pure deceit.

We need to reinstate our graduated income tax – with no exceptions. Tax the wealthy more than you tax the poor. That’s right, John McCain, redistribute the wealth. What do you think taxes are anyway, if not the redistribution of wealth? If Republicans had their way we would reenter the Middle Ages and have a feudal society – a society where the only people who pay taxes are the peasants and they pay them to the wealthy landowners. So Tea People, if you want tax reform, I’m with you all the way. But let’s be sensible. Tax the rich – we really need their money – and they have lots of it. And don’t tax the poor at all – they need their scant resources far more than we do.

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